Gumby’s Column

Just a quick column, as I’m boarding a plane for London and the Seni/Gracie Invitational show in afew hours. What’s up?

Just a quick column, as I’m boarding a plane for London and the Seni/Gracie Invitational show in afew hours. Hope to meet many of the European Grappling/Jiu-Jitsu crowd there.http://www.senishow.com I’ll be there for about nine days, then make it back home in time for the United Gracie tournament.I just may compete there, and in my division is none other than Scotty.HYPERLINK “http://www.charlesgracie.com/tournament.htm”http://www.charlesgracie.com/tournament.htm Speaking of which, I’m happy to report that Scotty and I managed to train with each other injuryfree for the first time in maybe four years! Usually one of us always gets hurt. Aside from runningOntheMat together, you might be surprised to know that Scotty and I were academy rivals longbefore that. We’re both about the same weight, skill level, we know all of each others tricks andstyles, and we both HATE to lose to the other one. We usually have the intense battles that canlast for close to an hour where we’ll go at it like we’re fighting for the last scrap of food on thetable. Even before Scotty left for Brazil we would rarely train together because it would put one ofus out of commission for weeks. Maybe we’re mellowing in our old age. We’ve entered the fight management game as well. Personally, it’s well known that grapplingcircuit is my personal preference, but when you get a good friend and a fighter the caliber ofCameron Earle asking you to be his manager, well, you don’t turn that opportunity down.Cameron is of course a black belt under Ralph Gracie and one of the most ruthless competitors inthe sport of BJJ ever; his win loss record and submission percentage is astonishingly high. Peoplehave been asking me for years when Cameron would be ready for MMA, and I’m announcing that the time is now. Look for Cameron to reenter MMA in a show in or near California soon.There are a lot of grapplers looking to make the jump to Mixed Martial Arts these days. There area lot of Mixed Martial Artists that are entering grappling competitions as well. While the twosports are closely related, they really are two different animals and success on one circuit does notnecessarily suggest success on the other. I’m not going to go into each of the differencesbetween preparing for the respective sports right now (remember, I have that plane to catch), but Ican tell you some tell tales sign for success on grapplers entering MMA. The first thing I look for is skill level. Someone who is successful in the grappling circuit isobviously at a head start for grappling in MMA. But more so you have to look at how and why thatperson was successful. Are they a Ã¬points playerÃ® or do they go for the submission? Are theyactively moving the entire time? How are there takedowns? (Being good on the ground is onething, taking it to the ground is something else). Do they prefer to be on top? Are theycomfortable on the bottom? How dependant is their grappling style on the gi? Like I said , thereare a lot of other factors that go into an MMA match, but if you’re a careful observer if thegrappling circuit you can give a good estimation of who is going to get a lot of submissions andwho is going to take a beating. Just some quick thought for the day. At any rate, I’m off to England and besides we’ve got a ton in store for you. Plenty of new video and gear (if you haven’t done so check out the online storefor the latest including new DVDs, video from Brazil, OntheMat hats, shirts and sweatshirts withmore on the way!) Plus coming very shortly this site will get a major overhaul and update fromEngineering to UI. Train Hard Fight Hard Party Hard Your Friend, Gumby

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